The Concert
by cherrynose
Summary: Ash, Serena, Bonnie, and Clemont stop to listen to a concert on their way to Anistar. Ash asks Serena to dance, what will happen next? Amourshipping, sort of a sequel to "Two Left Feet".


There was a concert in town. A group called the "Go-Rock Quads", which didn't exactly make Serena want to go, but she needed it. The group needed it. Ash had been stressing about his next gym battle in Anistar, training all hours of the day-and night, may she add. Clemont had been helping Ash train, staying up late and getting up early with the dark-haired trainer. Serena had been worried about both the boys as they weren't getting enough sleep, and poor Bonnie had been worried about all of them collectively.

"You guys, I think we should stay and go to this concert. I read about the Go-Rock Quads. They're supposedly amazing!" Serena had begged. She had suggested they stay, dance a little, have some fun.

"I don't know, Serena, we're almost to Anistar. Almost to my next gym battle!" Ash had replied, riled up despite the obvious signs of exhaustion under his eyes. "Clemont, you agree with me, right? We should keep going." But Clemont had hesitated. He was just as tired as Ash was, if not more so.

"Actually, I think Serena's right on this one. We all need a break; we've been travelling for days!" Clemont said, making Ash bite his cheek. He guessed he couldn't say no to both of them… Plus Bonnie was looking hopeful at the opportunity of going.

"Well, okay… But only for one night. Then we're on the road again." He had reluctantly agreed.

So here they were, three teenagers and a kid, waiting in an open field for the concert to begin. The stage had been set up already, complete with a dance floor, but the concert wasn't set to start for an hour or two more. To pass the time, Serena had done her and Bonnie's hair, even asking Ash if she would let him comb his out. "Sorry, Serena, it kind of does what it wants," he had responded sheepishly. And, to Serena's amazement, his hair really couldn't be tamed. She huffed.

"Well, I guess if we still have time to kill, I'm going to put together a new outfit. I'll be back in a little bit." And she walked off, in search of a place to change.

While she was gone, Ash realized he was actually…worried. He couldn't dance to save his life, and here he was, about to go to a concert. Where people would be dancing. Where he would be expected to dance. Ash frowned a little. He didn't want to embarrass himself in front of Bonnie or Clemont, who would no doubt laugh at him; but _especially_ not in front of Serena.

Serena. This girl, one of his closest friends, who he felt…differently about. It was kind of hard for Ash to explain, and even he didn't like to dwell on it for too long. It was a feeling, he knew that, but he couldn't quite place what it was. When he was near her, his heart wrenched, but in a good way. She made him feel warm.

"Ash?" A voice broke him out of his reverie, belonging to none other than Clemont. "Ash, the concert is starting soon, but there's still no sign of Serena. Can you go look for her in those trees over there?"

Ash agreed. "I hope nothing bad happened to her." By the time he reached the trees, the sun had just begun to set. The concert should start at any minute! People were already gathering below the stage.

"Serena? Where are you? The concert is starting!" He called, and suddenly there she was. Standing in front of him was Serena, wearing a black romper with an oversized burgundy cardigan. She was wearing the ribbon Ash had given her as a sort of headband, tying her hair back.

Ash was breathless.

"Sorry I took so long, I just couldn't figure out what to wear! How do I look?" She said in a girlish tone, doing a little spin for him.

"You look great! We should go, though. The concert's probably started already." He said, rubbing his nose. A light blush warmed his cheeks; he turned so she wouldn't notice.

With red blushes painted across both their cheeks, they walked back to the campsite. Serena walked with a little bounce in her step.

The concert had begun and the sun had finally set. Clemont had spread out two sleeping bags for them to sit on, and he and Bonnie were sitting and listening to the band. There was no shortage of people at the concert, at least a hundred had gathered in front of the stage.

One of the band members, a girl with long blue hair, grabbed the mic. "Hello, everyone! Thank you all for coming out tonight, we appreciate it! Now, sit back and enjoy the show!" Stepping back, she began to play a lovely tune on her violin. The rest of the band followed her lead, playing a song with a fast tempo to get the crowd riled up. Sure enough, the fans below started jumping around to the beat of the song.

Serena decided to do a little more research. Pulling out her guidebook, she began to read. "The band-'The Go-Rock Quads'-consists of four members, three boys and one girl. The girl, called Tiffany, plays the violin. Clyde plays the drums, and the other two-Billy and Garret-play the guitar."

Ash, who was sitting next to her, suddenly stood. "Ash?" Serena asked. "What're you doing?"

Ash gave her a toothy grin. "I'm going to dance, of course! They didn't set up that dance floor for nothing!" And he ran off.

Bonnie stood immediately after Ash left, claiming "I'm going to dance too!" And running after Ash.

Clemont shouted after her, "Bonnie, wait up! You'll get trampled in there!" Before following Ash and Bonnie into the mob scene, leaving Serena leaving no choice but to follow them.

She pushed her way through the crowd, but stopped in her tracks when she saw him. Ash Ketchum, bless his heart, was dancing his heart out. Of course, he was completely off beat, and taking up far too much room-but Serena thought he looked incredible. He had taken off his blue jacket and given it to Bonnie, who was dancing around in it. Clemont looked comically awkward, standing alone. The lights coming from the stage were glinting off his tan skin, and his amber eyes gleamed when they saw here. Ash, upon seeing her, grabbed her hand and brought her to the center of the dance floor.

Where everyone could see her. Watch her. Suddenly she regretted making them stay for this concert….

As if to make things worse, she heard one of the band members make an announcements. "Okay folks, we're going to slow things down, so if you have a special someone out in the crowd, grab 'em now!" Her cheeks warmed up at the thought of slow dancing with Ash.

"Serena?" She heard her crush's voice rise above the music. "Are you alright? You look little…uncomfortable." Ash said, looking at her with concern.

"Uh, I'm not the best dancer, and there's so many people here…" She trailed off. Ash understood, however, and took her hand. He looked into her eyes and said, "Serena, come on. It's just like that one time."

Hearing the words made Serena remember a night a long time ago, back before Ash took on Korrina.

 _Serena giggled. "Okay, Ash, we're going to try a waltz. It's a little slower, so it should help you get a sense of timing at least." The boy's brown eyes lit up in hope, making Serena smile. "Okay, let's do it!" He said, voice renewed with energy._

 _"Alright, come here. Put your hand here, and the other here…" Serena couldn't believe it. She was holding one of his hands! And the other was on her waist! She was so close to him… If only she knew what he was thinking. If he was as nervous about being so close to her._

 _"I'll lead, so just follow my movements. It's an easy one-two-three step, okay?" Serena stepped backwards with her right foot, and Ash did the same. "One, two, three, one two three…"_

 _They danced across the field for a while, and Ash seemed to be getting it. His brow was furrowed as he concentrated on their feet, moving in unison…_

Ash's voice brought her back to the present. "It's just like that. Just pretend it's you and me."

"Well, o-"Serena was interrupted by Bonnie, who was tugging on the sleeve of her cardigan. "Serena, dance with me! I wanna slow dance, too!" Serena offered Bonnie a smile and extended her hands. "Okay, let's dance then!" And the two girls danced, and Bonnie grinned as she was spun y Serena.

That left Ash smiling, albeit a little disappointed that his dance had been stolen. Turning to Clemont, he bowed, saying, "May I have this dance, sir?"

Clemont's face turned red, but as he was about to decline, Ash grabbed his hand and spun him around the dance floor, laughing the whole time.

The group certainly got some weird stares.

The end of the night came quicker than Serena expected it to. They had danced for what felt like hours, even getting Clemont to open up a little and dance. The crowd had slowly dispersed. Soon, most of the guests were gone, leaving only the group and the band.

Tiffany, the violin player, was sitting on the stage by herself, playing a slow melody.

Clemont walked up to Ash and Serena, who were resting on the grass next to the dancefloor. "I'm going to put Bonnie to bed now. It's a little late for her. Meet you back at the campsite." He informed them, carrying an exhausted Bonnie on his back. Walking away, he left Ash and Serena alone.

Ash looked at her, golden eyes glinting in the moonlight. "You know, we never got to finish our dance…" He said.

Serena looked at him, a little shocked he would suggest something like that He wanted to dance with her..? Serena had to look away to hide her blush.

"Sure, Ash. I'd like that."

And then they were dancing, slowly, to the rhythm of the violin. He looked into her blue eyes. He could get lost in them, they were as vast as the ocean. Holding her close, Ash felt that sensation he had been feeling a lot lately, but only when Serena was around. Ash had a feeling he knew what it was…..

Serena, looking into those familiar amber eyes, felt her stomach stir. Here she was, presented with the perfect opportunity to tell him how she felt-or maybe she should just go for it and kiss him. Her heart pounded even harder at the prospect. She couldn't do that, just invade his space like that. And yet, they were already so close…

They broke apart when they heard their names called. "Ash! Serena! Come on back!" Clemont's yell echoed through the field, and Ash and Serena turned away from each other to hide their blushes.

"Well, I guess we should head back…" Ash said, disappointment evident in his tone. Serena nodded beside him, silent. She could only wonder what would have happened… But she had to shake those thoughts off. She had a great time with Ash, a new memory for her to keep. That was all that mattered, right?


End file.
